Process for breaking petroleum emulsions



Patented May 25, 1948 UNITED STATES PROCESS FOR BREAKING PETROLEUM' EMULSIONS Melvin-De Groote, University City, and Arthur F. Wirtel, Glendale, Mo., assignors to Petrolite Corporation, Ltd., Wilmington, Del., a corporation of Delaware No Drawing. Application Julylfi, 1'945,

Serial No. 604,997

12 Claims. 1

This invention relates to the resolution of petroleum emulsions.

One object of our invention is to provide a novel process for resolving petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, that are commonly referred to as cut oil, roily oil, emulsified oil, etc., and which comprise fine droplets of naturally-occurring waters or brines dispersed in a more or less permanent state throughout the oil which constitutes the continuous phase of the emulsion.

Another object of our inventionis to provide an economical and rapid process for separating emulsions which have been prepared under controlled conditions from mineral oil, such as crude oil'and relatively soft waters or weak brines. Controlled emulsification and subsequent demulsification, under the. conditions just mentioned, are of significant value in removing impurities, particularly inorganic salts from pipeline oil.

And still another object of our invention is to provide a, new demulsifier for petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type..

Demulsification, as contemplated in the present application, includes the preventive step of commingling the demulsifier with the aqueous component which would or might subsequently become either phase of the emulsion, in absence of such precautionary measure. Similarly, such demulsifier may be mixed with the hydrocarbon component.

The demulsifying agent used in our herein described process for resolving petroleum emulsions, consists of an aminoalcohol ester derived by reaction between a, hydroxylated tertiary amine, such as triethanolamine and the fractional ester derived by reaction between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoa'lcohol in which there is at least oneoccurrence' of the radical:

One may conveniently consider the new chemical products herein contemplated as a sub-generic specie of a broader class of materials described in our co-pending application of this same date; Serial No. 605,002,, filed July 13, 1945. In

our said co-pending; application there is described 2 7 an ester derived by reaction between diglycollic acid and abasic acylatedJamino-alcohol, in which there is at least one. occurrence of theradical inwhich RC0 is the acyl radical of a monocarboxy detergent-forming acid having at leastB-and not more than 32- carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R is an alkylene radical having at least 2- and not more than'10 carbon atoms and n is a. small. whole number varying amino alcohol ester which represents a sub-genus of the broad class described in our co-pending application Serial No. 605,002, filed July 13,1945, but is in turn the genus of the herein describe invention. V

Obviously, the easiest procedure for the manufacture of the herein contemplated compounds is to prepare the acidic intermediates, as described in our -co-pen'ding application Serial No. 605,002, filed July 13, 1945, and then esterify such intermediates with triethanolamine or the equivalent tertiary amine which may be a monoamine or a polyamine. For this reason, the subject-matter immediately following is largely a repetition in verbatim form of what appears in our aforementioned co-pending application.

Thus, one reactant employed for the manufacture of the new demulsifier forming the subjectmatter of our present application, consists of an ester derived by reaction between diglycollic acid and a, basic acylated' aminoalcohol, in which there is at least one occurrence of the radical in which RC0 is the acyl radical of a mono carboxy detergent-forming acid having at least 8 and not more. than 32 carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R. is an alkylene radical having at least 2 and not more than 10 carbon atoms; and n is a small whole number varying from 1 to 10; and the molecular weight. of said compound in monomeric form being at least 213 ether linkages, as well as more than one amino nitrogen atom.

Reference to a basic amino nitrogen atom-is used in its conventional sense. (Unsaturated groups, or negative groups, if substituted for one, or more of the hydrogens of ammonia, reduce the 4 said hydroxyaminoether radical being further characterized by the presence of at least one radical derived from a basic hydroxyamine and being attached by at least one ether linkage to at least one radical selected from the class consisting of glycerol radicals, polyglycerol radicals,

glycol radicals, polyglycol radicals, basic hydroxyamine radicals, amido hydroxyamine radicals,

basicity of the nitrogen atom to a remarkable degree. In general, the presence of one negative group linked on the nitrogen is sufficient to destroy the ordinary basic properties. Textbook of- Organic Chemistry, Richter, 2nd edition, page 253.)

amino compounds, as final products, is intended toinclude the. salts and the anhydro base, as well as the hydrated base, since both'obviously are present when an aqueous system is being subjected to the reagent, or when the reagent is used as a water solution or dispersion. aqueous solution of the amine,the anhydro base, RNH2, the hydrated base, RNH3OI-I, and

the 2 ions are all presentff Richter, s. v., page As has been previously stated, the primary raw materialsor intermediates contemplated for the production of the hereindescribed new dernulsifier, are well known. For convenience and for the purpose of brevity, reference is made to the following three United State-s patents to De Groote and Keiser, to wit: Nos. 2,324,488, 2,324,489 and, 2,324,490, all dated July 20, 1943. Said patents areconcerned with processes for breakingwater-in-oil emulsions;

a As has been previously pointed out in our copendingapplication Serial No. 605,002, filed July 13, .1945, we have described products obtained by reaction between diglycollic acid and acylated amino alcoholsof the kind described in said three aforementioned patents immediately preceding.

A very important aspect of the invention described in our co-pending application is the particular type or variety wherein there is a residual carboxylic radical present, which represents part of the diglycollic acid residue. instance we need do nothing more than employ the same aminoalcohols described collectively in the aforementioned three patents as being suitable for acylation and react such tertiary aminoalcohols, which must contain a hydroxyl radical, with the aforementioned fractional ester, thus producing the resultant which is herein contemplated as a new composition and as a demulsifying agent. Thussaid aminoalcohols must have present an alcoholiform hydroxyl as part of an acyl radical or as part of a substituent for an aminohydrogen' atom. Thus, one may employ not only the aminoalcohols described in the three aforementioned United States patents, but also the obvious analogs in which there is no hydroxyl radical present. Subsequent reference will be made to this particular type and examples will be included. a a

Aforementioned U. S. Patent No. 2,324,488 describes hydroxylated acvlated aminoether compounds containing:

(a) A radical derived from a basic hydroxyaminoether, and said radical being of the kind containing at least one amino nitrogen free from attached aryl and amide-linked acyl radicals;

Reference to an amine and the subsequent (In an In the present --and aryl alkanolamine radicals; said basic hydroxyaminoether radical being characterized by containing not more than G0 carbon atoms; and

(b) An. acyl radical derived from a detergentiorrning monocarboxy acid having at least 8 carbon atoms. and not more than 32 carbon atoms, said acylated aminoether being additionally characterizedby the fact that said aforementioned acyl radical is a substituent for a hydrogen atom of an alcoholic hydroxyl radical.

Aforementioned U. S. Patent No. 2,324,489 describes hydroxylated acylated monoamino compounds free from ether linkages,said hydroxylated acylated amino compounds being of the following type: r

noooonnzom oncnnmm in which RG00 represents the oxyacyl radical derived from a monobasic, detergent-forming acid; T represents a member of the class consisting of hydrogenatoms, non-hydroxy hydrocarbon radicals, and acylated radicals, obtained by replacing a hydrogen atom of the hydroxyl grouper an alkylol radical by the acyl radical of a monobasic carboxy acid having less than 8 carbon atoms; or represents a small whole number which is less than 10; m representsjthe l lmc or 3; 121. represents the numeral 0, 1 or 2; and 111" represents the numeral 0, 1 or 2; with the proviso that m plus 772' plus m"=3.

Aforementioned U. S. Patent No. 2,324,490 describes basic hydroxylated acylated"'polyamino compounds free from ether linkages, said compounds being the following'formula:

in which n represents a small whole number varying from 2 to 10; :1: is a small whole number varying from 0 to 10; Z is a member of the class consisting of H, RCO, R'CO, and D, in which RCO represents an acyl radical derived from a detergent-forming monocarboxy acid; RCO- is an acyl radical derived from a lower molecular weight carboxy acid having 6 carbon atoms or less and D is a member of the class consisting of alkyl, hydroxyalkyl, aminoalkyl, and acyloxyalkylene, in which instance the acyl group is a member of the class consisting of RC0 and. RCO; and the acylated polyamine is further characterized by the fact that there must be present a member of the class consisting of (a) Acyloxyalkylene radicals, in which the acyl group is RC0; and- (b) Joint occurrence of an amino radical, in which the acyl group is RC0 and a hydroxyalkyl radical.

A description of certain high molal monocarboxy acids, and more particularly, those com- 'monly referred to as detergent-forming monocarboxy acids, appears in all three of the aforementioned U. S. Patents. For convenience, the

following description is substantially a verbatim form of the same subject-matter as 'itappears .in aforesaid U. S. Patent No. 2,324,490.

It is well known that certain monocarboxy organic acids containing 8 carbon atoms or more, and not more than 32 carbon atoms, are characterized by the fact that they combine with alkalis to produce soap or soap-like materials. These detergent-forming acids include .fattyacids, resin acids, petroleum acids, etc. For the sake of convenience, these acids be indicated by the formula R.COOI-I. Certain derivatives of detergent-forming acids react with alkali to produce soap or soap-like materials, and are the obvious equivalent of the unchanged or unmodified detergent-for-ming acids. "For instance, instead of "fatty acids one might employ the chlorinated fatty acids. Instead of the resin acids, one might employ the hydrogenated resin acids. Instead of naphthenic acids, one might employ brominated naphthenic acids, etc. 7

The fatty acids .are of the type commonly referred .to as higher fatty acids, and of course, this is also true :in regard to derivatives of the kind indicated, insofar that such derivatives are obtained from higher fatty acids, The petroleum acids include not only naturally-occurring naphthenic acids, but .also acids obtained by the oxidation'of wax, parafiin, etc. Such acids may have as many as 32 carbon atoms. For instance, .see U. 8. Patent No. 2,242,837, dated May 20, 194 1, to Shields.

We have found that the composition of matter herein described and employed as the intermediate in the manufacture of our new demulsifier, is preferably derived from unsaturated fatty acids having 18 carbon atoms. Such unsaturated fatty acids include oleic acid, ricinoleic acid, linoleic acid, linolenic acid, etc. One may employ mixed fatty acids, as, for example, the fatty acids obtained from hydrolysis of cottonseed oil, soyabean oil, etc. Our preferred intermediate or raw material is obtained from unsaturated fatty acids, and more especially, unsaturated fatty acids containing a hydroxyl radical, or unsaturated fatty acids which have been subjected to oxidation. In addition to synthetic carboxy acids obtained by the oxidation of paraflins or the like, there is a somewhat analogous class obtained by treating carbon dioxide or carbon monoxide, in the presence of hydrogen or an olefin, with steam, or by causing a halogenated hydrocarbon to react with potassium cyanide and .saponifyi-ng the product obtained. Such products :or mixtures thereof, having .at least 8 and not more than 32 carbon atoms, and having at least one carboxyl group, or the equivalent thereof, are suitable as detergent-forming monocarboxy acids; and another analogous class equally suitable, is the mixture of carboxylic acids obtained by the alkali treatment of alcohols of high molecular weight formed inthe catalytic hydrogenation of carbon monoxide.

As is well known, one need not use the high molal monocarboxy acid, such as a fatty acid, for introduction of the acyl group or acyloxy group. Any suitable functional equivalent, such as the acyl halide, the anhydride, ester, amide, etc., may be employed.

The intermediate or raw material employed in the manufacture of our new dem-u-lsifier consists of an aminoalcohol ester, as described; and particular attention is called to the fact previously noted, that such esterified aminoalcohol must contain a hydroxyl radical "to permit reaction with diglycollic acid. :Other aminoalcohol esters anol propylamine, etc.

16 of the kind herein contemplated .as reactants are described in U. S. Patent ,No. 2,259,704, dated October 21, 1941, to Monson and Anderson,

In light of what has been said, it hardly appears necessary to include a list of reactants and intermediates derivable therefrom. Thus, suitable tertiary amines which may be employed include the following: Triethanolamine, dieth'anolalkylamines, such as diethanolethylamine, dieth- Other examples include diethanol methylamine, tripropanolamine, dipropanol methylamine, cyclohexanol diethanolamine, 'dicyclohexanol ethanolamine, cyclohexyl diet'hanolamine, dicyclohexyl eth'anolamine, dicyclohexanol ethylamine, benzyl .diethanolbenzyl dipropanolamine, tripentanolamine, trihexanolamine, hexyl diethanolamine, octadecyl diethanolamine, etc.

Additional amines include ethanol diethylamine, propanol diethylamine, ethanol d-ipropylamine, propanol dipropylamine, ethanol dicyclohexylamine, cyclohexanol diethylamine, dibenzyl ethanolamine, etc. Ether type 'aminoalcohols may be obtained from the above mentioned aminoalcohols, for example, by treating them with one or more moles of an oxyalkylating agent, such as ethylene oxide, propylene oxide, butylene oxide, glycid, etc. It is to be noted that comparable products are obtained by treating primary or secondary amines, rather than arylamines with an olefine oxide. Primary or secondary amines which can be subjected to oxyalkyl-ation include diethanolamine, monoethanolamine, ethyl ethanolamine, methyl ethanolamine, propanolamine, dipropanolamine, propyl propanolamine, etc. Other examples include cyclohexylolamine, dicyclohexylolamine, cyclohexyl ethanolamine, cyclohexyl propanolamine, benzylethanolamine, benzylpropanolamine, pen'tanolamine, hexanolamine, octylethanolamine, octadecylethanolamine, pentanolamine, hexanolamine, octylethanolamine, dodecylethano'lamine, cyclohexanolethanolamine, etc.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 1 AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 2 Ricinoleic acid in the preceding example is replaced by methyl naphthenate.

AMINOALCOHOL 'ESTER Example 3 Methyl abietate is substituted for ricinoleic acid in Example 1, preceding.

AMINOALCOHOL .Esrnn Ewam-ple 4 Ethyl cleate is substituted for ricinoleic acid in Example 1.

7 :AMINOALCQHQLEST J I Examp 5,

triethanolamine in .Examples 1 to 4, preceding.

7 AMINOALCoI oLESTER Example 6 One pound mole of triethanolamine is reacted with two'p'ound moles of ethylene oxide and the etherized amine so obtained is Substituted for triethanolamine in Examples 1 to 4, preceding.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 7 the etherized amine soobtained is substituted for triethanolamine in Examples 1 to 4, preceding.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER e 7 Example 9 I 7 One pound mole of diethanol amylamine obtained by reacting one pound mole of amylamine with two pound moles of ethylene oxide, is employed in place of triethanolamine in Examples 1 to 4, preceding.

AMINOALCOVHIOL ESTER Example 1 The same procedure is employed as in the preceding example, except that an etherized amine is obtained by treating amylamine with 4, 6 or 8 moles of ethylene oxide and such etherized amine is employed instead of diethanol amylamine.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 11 One pound mole of castor oil is reacted with 3 pound moles of triethanolamine, as described in aforementioned U. S. Patent No. 2,324,489, under the heading Intermediate hydroxylated amine, Example 1.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 12 The same procedure is followed as in the preceding example, except that either one pound mole or two pound moles of glycerol are added to the reaction mass consisting of one pound mole of castor oil and three pound moles of triethanolamine.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 13 The resultants obtained in Examples 1 to 4, preceding, are treated with equal molal ratios of an olefine oXide haVing less than carbon atoms.

AMInoALconoL ESTER Example 14 One follows the directions of U. S. Patent No. 2,293,494 to De Groote and Keiser; dated August 9 2, to produce an amine of the following composition: I I

on oznlo c ns s mmon OH CaHrOH Such amine is substituted for triethanolamine in the preceding examples.

AMINoALcoHoL ESTER 7 Example 15 One pound mole of hydroxyethyl ethylenediamine is reacted with 3 moles of ethylene oxide to give the corresponding tetrahydroxylated derivative. Such compound is' employed in'place of triethanolamine in the preceding examples.

' AMINoALconoI. EST R Example 16 The'same procedure is followed as in the preceding example, except that 4' to 7 moles of ethylene oxide are employed instead of 3 moles.

V AMINoALcoHoL ESTER Example 17 The same procedureis employedasinthe preceding example, except that diethylenetriamine is substituted for ethylenediamine, and treated in such a manner as to eliminate any secondary amino radicals.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 18 OHCzH4 Cali-10H are substituted for ethylenediamine in the preceding examples.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 19 In the preceding examples, Where more than one high molal acyl radical can be employed, two ricinoleyl radicals or the equivalent are introduced into the polyamine alcohol.

AMInoALconoL ESTER Example 20 Unsymmetrical diphenyl diethylenetriamine is treated with ethylene oxide and substituted for oxyethylated ethylenediamine in the preceding examples.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 21 Symmetrical diacetyl triethylenetetramine is treated with 4 moles of ethylene oxide and substituted for oxyethylated ethylenediamine in the preceding examples.

AMINOALCOHOL ESTER Example 22 Additional examples are prepared in the man- The same procedure is followed as in Example 22, preceding, except that one employs the amines described in Examples 9*, 10, 11 and 13 of U. S. Patent No. 2,306,329, to De Groote and Keiser, dated December 22, 1942.

AMm'oALconoL ESTER Example 24 Soyabean oil, blown soyabean oil, blown castor oil, or blown teaseed oil is substituted for castor oil in the preceding examples;

In the above examples it is obvious that free hydroxyl radicals may be present as part of a hydroxya-lkyl radical, or as part of the acyl radical of a fatty acid, such as ricinoleic acid.

As an example of a preferred type of raw material which is effective for use in preparing our new composition and demulsifier, the following is submitted: We prepared a mixture of diamine and triamine materials which correspond essentially to either one of the two following type forms:

OHC2H4 NC2H4O CZH-IN OECzHa CZHJOH onozni c2540 ozniN NC2H4O C zHiN OHCzH; C2H4OH' After determining the average molecular weight of such a mixture, we combine the same with castor oil in the proportion of one pound mole of castor oilfor 3 pound moles of the mixed amines, pound mole in the latter case being calculated on the average molecular weight as determined. Such mixture is heated to approximately 160"- 260 C. for approximately 6' to 25 hours, until reaction is complete, as indicated by the disappearance of all of the triricinolein present in the castor oil.

Having obtained aminoalcohol esters of the kind previously described, such products are reacted with diglycollic acid in varying proportions, particularly in proportions which employ more: than one mole of diglycollic acid for each mole of amino'al'cohol ester. This procedure yields arr acidic fractional ester which is then reacted further with triethanolamine or the like. The manufacture of the herein contemplated intermediate compounds is comparatively simple and involves nothing more or less than esterification, as differentiated from salt formation. For instance, a basic aminoalcohol ester might be combined with d-iglycollic acid so as to produce a salt, Suchtype ofmaterial is not herein contemplated, except to the extent that it isincidental tothe formation of an ester.- Aminoalcohol esters of the kindherein contemplated as reactants for esterification with diglycoll-ic acid. have been combined in similar formswith other dibasicacids, particularly phthalic acid in the form of the acid, anhydride, ester, etc. Similarly, in the present instance, one uses diglycollic acid in the same way that phthalic acid, maleic acidand tartaric acid would be employed. For complete description or such procedure, reference is made to U. S. PatentNo- 2,154,422,, dated Aprilv 18, 1939, to De Groote,,Keiser and Blair.

In the preparation of esterification products, the esterification reactibnmay be caused to take place readily upon the application of heat, the reaction, being more rapid the higher the temperature that is employed, but care should be takennot to employ excessively high. temperatures which would. cause decomposition. The reaction may, if desired, be in the presence of an inert solvent such as xylene, which" may be removed upon the completion of the reaction. When water is formed as a reaction product, the esterification reaction may be conducted under" a reflux condenser, using a water trap toremove water as" it is formed. The reaction can also be hastened by passing through the reacting materials a dried inert gas, such as nitrogen or CO2; Generally speaking, however, the reactions take place rapidly, quickly, and completely,bysimply heating substances to enter into the reaction in desired stoichiometric proportions at a temperature above the boilingpoint of water, usually between about 259 C, providedthere is no decomposition. The most desirable products are obtained by combinations in which the ratioof moles of diglycollic" acid to moles of particular material reacting therewith is within the ratios of 1 to 3 and 3' to 1 Esterifioation reactions of the kind content-- plated are used for the production of a wide variety of esters, resinous material's, sub-resinousmaterials, and include plasticizers. Attention is directed to the following patents which are a cross-section of conventional esterification procedure which can be applied in any instance to the production of the herein contemplated esters,

British-- Patent N0, 422,845, Jan. 14, 1935 British patent to Eckey, No. 500,765, Feb. 15', 1939 U. S.- patent to Ma'lm', No. 2,170,030, Aug. 22,. 1939 Bradley, No. 2,166,542, July 18, 1939 Barrett, No. 2,142,989, Jan. 10, 1939 Frazier, No; 2,075,107, Mar. 30, 1 937 Sly, No. 2,073,031, Mar. 9, 1937 Bradley, No. 1,951,593, May 20, 1934 Lawson, No; 1,909,196; May 16, 19-33 Kessler, No. 1,714,173, May 21, 1929 7 Van Schaack, No. 1,706,639, Mar. 26, 1929 Jones, No. 2,264,759,. Dec; 2, 1941 Wietzel, No. 1,732,392, Oct. 22, 1929 Groves et al., No. 1,993,738, Mar. 12, 1935 ACIDIC FRACTIONAL ESTER Example- 1 One: pound mole of an aminoalcohol ester, asdescribed under'the heading Aminoalcohol es- ACIDIC F AcTIoNAL EsTER Example 2 The same procedure is followed as in the precedin example, except-that 2 pound moles of diglycollic acid are used for each pound mole of the. aminoalcohol ester. The time of reaction may have to'be increased moderately.

AcrnIo FRACTIOE L ES E V Example 3 I Thesame procedure is followed as in Example 1, except that 2%,. poundmoles of diglycollic acid are employed instead of 1 pound mole as in the previous example; The time of reaction may have to be increased moderately and the temperature of reaction increased slightly.

Acrmc FRACTIONAL ESTER Example 4 An aminoalcohol ester is prepared in the manner described under the headingYAminoalcohol ester, Example 11, preceding andthe resultant product ;is assumed to representthe formation of 3 pound moles of an aminoalcohol ester. Such 3 pound moles of the aminoalcohol ester so formed are treated in the manner described in the three examples preceding, that is, with 3 moles of diglycollic acid, six moles of diglycollic acid, and 6%. moles of diglycollic acid.

i Acrnrc ERAcTroNAn ESTER .Example' 5" The same procedure is employed as in ExampIe 4, except that the 3 moles of aminoalcohol ester is obtained by reaction involving 1 pound mole of castor oil and 6 pound moles of triethanolamine. The resultant, considered as representing 3 pound moles, is reacted with 3 pound moles, 6 pound moles and 6% pound moles of diglycollic acid.

Acrnrc FRAQTIONAL ES E Example 6 The same reactant employed as in Example 5, preceding, is reacted with 7%; pound moles of diglycollic acid.

ACIDIC FRAcTIoNAL ESTER I Example 7 The same procedure is followed as in Examples 5 and 6, immediately preceding, except that the aminoalcohol ester is obtained by reaction in- VOlVil'lg 1 pound mole of castor oil and 9 poun moles of triethanolamine.

AcInIo FRAcTroNAn ESTER Example 8 An aminoalcohol ester prepared from ricinoleic acid or ethyl ricinoleate in the manner described under the heading Aminoalcohol ester, Example 14 is substitutedfor the product exemplified by "Aminoalcohol ester, Example '1 in Acidic Fra'c tional Ester, Example 1,? preceding.

AcInIc FRACTIONEEESTE Example 9 One pound mole of an amine ofthe following composition:

oncgrn 0213.011

CzHfQCiHrN l V I I onoinlfij 'CzHiOH. (see Aminoalcohol ester, Example 18, preceding) is reacted with 1 pound mole of ricinoleic acid or ethyl ricinoleate and the aminoalcohol ester so obtained reacted with 1,2, 2% and 3 pound moles of diglycollic acid for each pound mole of the aminoalcohol ester.

' AornIc'FRAc mnAE'Es'rERJ" Emam'pZelO One pound mole of an amine composition: 7

OHCHH4 OH H 2 40 CQQC, Q0 211 onozm H n n I of the following Carrion (see Aminoalco hol esteflExainple 18, preceding) is reacted with one pound mole of ricinoleic acid or ethyl ,ricinoleateand the aminoalcohol ester so obtained reacted with 1,2, 2 /4 and 3 pound moles of diglycollicacid for each pound of the aminoalcoholester. r

' VACIDIC FRAcTmnA Es ER l E ccantple1l V One pound mole of an amine of the following composition:

OHCzH; C2H4O C2134 NCzH4O CZHlN onozni (see Aminoalcohol ester, Example 24, preceding) is reacted with 1 pound mole of ricinoleic acid or ethyl ricinoleate and the aminoalcohol ester so obtained reacted -with 1; 2, 2 A and 3 pound moles of diglycollicacid for-each pound mole of theaminoalcoholesteri 5 It may be well to pOint'out'that the amino compounds herein contemplated forreaction with digl-ycollic' acid, may-'b'e-monoaminoor polyamino in type, There'n'jlust be at least one free hydroxylradical present;- 'Ihere .must be present at least 'one o curr nce of the radical a RCO.'(OR')1LN in which RC0 is thelacylradicalof, a monocarboxy' detergent-forming".acid. having at least 8 and not .more than 32 icarbon'ratomsjand the amino nitrogen atom must be. basic,i."e., free from directilinkagew'ith an unsaturated or negative radical; such as an a'cyl radical, or an aryl radical. .The Rf.is;an alkylene ;radical having at least 2: andfnot more than; 10 carbon atoms, and preferably, 2; 3'01: lcarbonatoms, "I'he alkylene radical may: be considered' as being de rived'from an olefine .oxide,-such as those previously mentioned; Additional; reactive olefine oxides are; describedjin. U. Sj-Patent No. 2,208,581, to HOeffeIman, dat d. u :23 ;l9 0;a clude amoneiothers, clycidel xy ene xid e e i aanap'zs.

oxide,v etc. The. character n indicates a number varying from 1 tov 10, but preferably, from 1 to l. Recurrences of R need'not' bethe same. For instance, one mole of triethanolamine might be reacted with 3moles of ethylene oxide, and.

the resultant product so obtained may be reactedrwith 3'moles of butylene oxide. Theaminoalcohol: so obtained could be esterified in the manner previously. described. It is obvious, of course, that where n is.2 or. more, the product is in essence an esterified.aminoetheralcohol, the expression etheralcohol being frequently. applied to alcohols where a. carbon atom. chain is interrupted at least. once by an. oxygen atom. Ether. linkages may appear in other positions where there is no direct union with RCO.

The simplest reactant herein contemplated is the octenoic acid ester of diethanolmethylamine.

tained by etherization may have a substantially higher molecular weight.

Reference has been made to the use of glycide, epichlorhydrin, etc., as an oxyalkylating agent. Reference has also been made to reactions which involve etherization in which glycerol appears as a react-ant. Thus, R, previously referred to as being an alkylene radical, such as ethylene, propylene, etc., obviously includes radicals obtained from glycerol or glycide, i. e., the hydroxy propylene radical. Hence, in the hereto appended claims, reference to the propylene radical, either generally or specifically, is intended to include the hydroxy propylene radical as well.

Attention isv directed to the. fact that in the hereto appended claims, the proviso that an ether linkage be present does not mean that the ether linkage must necessarily occur in the radical by which the acyl radical RC is joined to the nearest basic nitrogen atom. For instance,-

comparethe last two previous formulae preceding (Acidic fraction ester, Examples and 11), and note that the introduction'of an acyl radi cal issuch that the acyloxy radical is joined to,-

Or-united .to, a basic amino nitrogen atom by an uninterrupted carbon atom chain. Thus, reference in the hereto appended claims to an ether radical includes both types of ether linkages, i. e., the type'where' the ether linkage is part of the'radicallinking RCO to the nearest basic amino nitrogen atom, and in such instances where the ether radical does not represent partof -the linking radical which unites RCO to the nearest basic amino nitrogen atom, but involves a radical uniting two nitrogen atoms.

At this point it may be well to re-emphasize the nature of the compounds herein contemplated, theemost expedient method of manufacture and the preferred formwhich represents in fact'an invention within an invention. The first step involves the production of an acylated amino alcoholv in which there is present a high molal acyloxy radical, as defined, and also an alcoholic hydroxyl radical. There must be present at. least one basic amino radical; and theremay be present-more i boxyl radicalsas-part ofia diglycollic acid group.

We havefound that the bestresults areobtained from: triethanolamine, heat. polymerized triethanolaminesg. and polymerization products of triethanolamines'and glycerol. These aretypifiem by the. following three formulae. previously presented:

o H otHlo oiHt tr cer-ion OH otnlo 11 O HC2H4 CZH-iOH NCzHiO O2H3N' 0302114" canon C2H4OB orro 2H4 I o 2134 0 C2H'4N- Noi'mo otnmq V Ciel-on 011cm! canton The acyloxy group .-is:preferably obtained-from an also reason to believe that .etherification of such triethanolamine group, with other ethanol-:radicals;v can andadoes take place-,-especially; asa-secondaryj reaction under drastic conditions of =re' action, as compared with milder conditions; of reaction. These variations. inreaction conditions are hereinafter described;

Returning to a considerationofrthe reactants employed in obtaining. the present composition it is to be noted thatin some instances condensation polymerization oan take place-insofar that both reactants; are-.polyfunctional; This-is not necessarily'the casein each instance, as; for example, the aminoester: obtained:by reaction'of ricinoleic acid and diethyl ethanolamine or 'oleic acid and ethyl dieth'anolaminea What .has .beenrsaid in :thea'paragraph immediately preceding is concerned. with: i the i acidic fractional ester which -is considered; as an.=:intermediate. Further considerationof the resinous or' sub-resinous nature of the intermediate will be considered further in subsequent'palagraphs. It should be. noted, however, that the hydroxylated tertiary amine, particularly'i-f polyhydroxylated, ,whichhappens: to bethe case inith'e finstance'of the preferred reactant triethanolamine, tends to further increase the molecular Weight-or theresinous or sub-resinous nature of theffinal product...

On the. Other handjwhere one .of .the reactants is an esterified aminoalcoholderived=from aminoe I 2,442,075 15. l6 sienna iof: theikind describedrby'formulaesinj "The preferred. reagents: hereincontcmplated Amino-alcohol esters, Examples 1,1114 and"1 7,'-'- I it isobviousthatreactiontwitli.atdicarboxy acid, y

' such as :diglycollic acid ,i;can' produce. resinous or I I late'd tertiary amine,- to wit; triethanolamineij In I sub-resinous products. "In many instances such a monomeric form. the resultant of suchreactions ub-resinous or bal mlike p du t are. ny involving, for-instance; one mole of ricinoleicacid,

I the mostsdesirable. of alL-b'ut they probably' do'njot I I j 2, B 'or/lmoles of triethanolamine and even amole represent any large degree of polymerization: in I I I I other words, 'theistriuctural units may appear": 3

or 4' times over, and in substantially, every Linand even if the monomeric unit adds. severakdie I I I glycollic acid radicals, yet Zai'ter allowing for the I elimination of water, inflthe condensation= poly represent monomers of low multiple lpolymers I p derived from cast-or oil and 'thecheapest hydroxy-; I I

i:g1y.cer0l,; isstill distinctly under a thousand;

less than 5,000.

stance, the molecular weight is distinctly less than I 5,000. ivviithjperhapsBgOOO as'an average figure. Otherwise stated, such. polymers consistj lar'geh I of dimers, trimers, tetramers, pentam'ers, hex- I I amers, eta, having molecular weights, by the ordinary melting point; depression. methods, of I It. is also obvious that poly: 1

. I imerization maybedue to this formation of. new i I i ether linkages, as wellas esterification. Iii-order I I I to produce such solo-resinous low multiple I polyj E mers; one-need only continue thetime of reaction,

I I or-use asomewhat increased temperature of re I I 2 action, provided the 'este'rified aminoalcohol of-: I fers opportunity for condensation jpolymerization by either'esterificastionor:etherizzation.=

. merization; it becomes obvious that low multiple condensationipolymers will not exceed a'molecular I I weight of; 5,000. Afterv reactionwithtriethanolamine orthelike the resultantorcompositi'onof. I I matter: may. have 'an even. I higher weight,- for reasons indicated. I x r j A rather com lete description of :ester-ification I involving particularly the carboxyl 'radical :of diglycollic: acicl and: hydroxylated compound.

' containing a basicigrouphas; been'presented pre- In light ofwhat hasbeensaid; it becomes ob- I is alkaline in nature, that is, has more basic amino nitrogen atoms present than in esterifiedi diglycollic carboxyl radicals. Similarly, one may have a neutral salt form where the number of basic amino nitrogen atoms is just equal to thenumber of free diglycollic acidradicals, and finally one may have the acidic form where the number of free diglycollic acid radicals is greater than the number of basic amino nitrogen radicals. In. this connection attention is directed to the structural formulae of the aminoalcohols'depicted in "Aminoalcohol ester, Examples 14 and 18. :In each instanceone' could introduce at least one acyl group,.particularly. a hydroxyl acyl group, such as the ricinoleyl radical, and still introduce sufficient diglycollic acid radicals, so that the free radicals resulting from the combination of only one of the two diglyccllic acid radicals would be in excess of the number of famino nitrogen atoms present. Our preferred form. of reagent isthe one which shows either basic properties or acidic properties, preferably the latter. YAnother type which is particularly valuable is the type in which both free carboxylic radicals and hydroxyl'radicals are present. Such type is apt to appearin the polymers previously described. It is also evident that if unreacted, a'carboxyl radical and the basic amino nitrogen residue. maycau'se inneri salt formation to takeplace and may also be responsible for the'formation of miscells when the herein contemplated compounds are used under,

such conditions in. which efiectiveness is related tosurface activity. .i i

; viously diflicult, if not impossible, to-present a I iormula' depicting such more elahorateand more I complicated aspect of the invention; i, ,e;,-' a for-; I mm: which would describe'the. low multiple poly :mer, as well as the monomer. 'I-Iowever,}insofar:

i that such polymer is essentially a repetition Of the structural unit with; only a. comparativelysmall I change,; such as one: expects in condensation. poly-L merization, it is intended I that the; cla mS 3 7 8381 0 r i appended contemplate in the broadest-aspect I ,boththe monomers and the'polymers. I It is our preierence'to employ: interrnediates', I

r wherein there is an excessof unreactedj diglycollic I I i acid, radicals comparedwith basic amino-. nitrogen I atoms. 'By'p'roper'selection of-ratio of. reactants; 1

one may, of course, have a type of ester which Iviously Specific examples of s'ucliesterificationj I involving, a diglycollic :acid carboxyl. and Bil y? j .droxylated compound containing; a basic group I j I have been included as for example in the illus tration identified r as Acidic I .fractionali ester; I

Example 1'. Obviously, the iurther'esterification I of: a reeidualdiglycollic acid radical "with a basic; 7 I I ,nydroxylated reactant as; contemplated involves. I I

iner'ely the same esterification procedure as hasv I beenpointed out previously and heing'in essence I I j I a procedure involving .a: temperature above; the; I

I boiling; point-of water 'and below the point jwhere: I I

I destructivedecomposition of thereactants begins. I

Furthermore, esteri lication as such can be'measured in; either one i or two ways, the amount of I I I I .water evolved or the reductionin'carboxyl'acidity I by :esterification. The conditions previously sug- I gested in regard .totemperature, .to wit, -250 C. and the time period of- 2 to l lhours are per-,- I

fectlysatisfactory because both esterifications are 1 essentially the same sort of reactions, i. e., involving a diglycollic acid: carboxyl and a basic hydroxylated compound. I

COMPOSITION oFMArrER Example 1 'An acidic fractional ester is prepared in the mannerexemplified by Example 3, preceding. In the preparation of the fractional estenthe reactioniis stopped when there are approximately an averageof 2 free carboxyls per structural unit. Totwo'inoles of the product so obtained, there is addedone mole of triethanolamine. Possibly and prohably,- under the more drastic conditions, Water of e'therification is also lost. 'It is to be noted that if the triethanolamine acts as atrihydric alcohol, that-it can unite with approximately t'wo thirds oi -the free carboxyl radicals present, a ndithus, the final productis characterized by the presence of some free carboxyl radica-lsnotwithstanding the fact that thereflis prescut an added ba sic amino nitrogeri atom in the sub-resinous materialso obtained. Our experionce is, howeventhat the acidity does correspond Although the nature ot the W reaction; and the chemical structure o'f the' resultants are not sus molecular Comosrrroii oFMArTm Example -2 The same procedure followed as in Example 1, -'precedi-n g,' "except that the aminoalcohhl este-r, which is ---conve'rted into the acidic "fractional ester, is the kind exemplifid'by jAminoalcohol ester, Example 5, 6, 7 01' 8, instead of Aminoalcohol ester;-Example"1, which was used as the raw material for the preparation of Acidic fractional ester, Example 3.

' COMPOSITION or MATTER Example 3 r The same procedure is followed as in Example '1, preceding; except that the acidic fractional ester employed is the kind exemplified by Acidic fractional ester, Examp1e4, in which 6% moles of diglycollic acid are employed.

COMPOSITION or MATTER Example?! The sameprocedure is followed as'in Example 1, preceding, except that the acidic fractional ester employed is the kind exemplified by Acidic fractional ester, Example '5, "in which 6% moles of diglycollic acid are employed.

COMPOSITION or MATTER Example 5 The sameprocedure is followed'as in Example 1, preceding, except that the acidic fractional ester employed is the-kind exemplified by Acidic fractional ester, Example 7,-in which 6% moles of diglycollic acid for each pound mole of castor oil originally employed in preparation of the -'aminoalcoh0l ester.

comosirron or MATTER Example 6 The acidicfractionaiester"exemplified by Exampree and. obtained by'th'eemployment of 2%. moles of '=dig1ycol'1ic acid, is reacted with triethanolamine in the manner described in Example 1, preceding.

GoMPosnioN'onMATTER Example 7 The 'acidic fractional ester exemplified b 'Examped-cane obtained by the em loyment of '2l/ymo-les' of-diglycollic acid-is reacted with triethanoIaniine-ln themanner described in Example 1, preceding.

Comosrrroxor MATTER Example 8 Inc acidi'c rra-ctiona1 ester exemplified by Example i-i and 'obtained by the employment of 2 molesoidiglycollic acid-"is reacted with triethanolainmein the manne'r described in Examp-1e 1, preceding.-

3:8 CoMPosmonoFMATrER Example 'Ii 'ip'ropan61amine is substituted fiirtr'iethafibF amine in the recedin'gexampies. "I'his'i'so Torin 'ismost readily available. 7

COMPOSITION on MATTER Example -1"0 l ributarro-lamineiscubstitfltd -for tr iethano laminefin Examples-1 to--8, preceding.-

commerce OFMATTER Eaample 11' r erti-ary mummified-amines. such I r 'prop'anoiamme tributanoiamine, etc. ave" been treated with three, ole's of-ethylene oxide or some other t are substituted for the es n Examples 1 to'1'0,1)re'ceding.

"In Examples 1 to awe-ce ing;- tnethane a miiqe is replaced by three-fourths V stoichiometric r'a'tio 'of'fan amine of "the =fol'lbwing composition which "has been "previously described:

G'2 4 QBHs N cilia-cit: on

051 63 I Comfosrrron 0F MATTER- Example- 13 In 'Ecamples' 1 to 8, preceding; triethanelamine is replaced by =three=fourths its -stoichiometric ratioiof 'an amin-e of the-following composition which :hasbeen"previously-described:

Como's'moie or V Ediiitfipl'efil 5 In'EXampleS' -1 t0--8,-precedin'g,' triethanolamine replaced-"by threefifths its st-oichiometri'c ratio of anam-ineof the following composition, which has' been' previouslydesoribed:

preferred composition in T th'e'i present in'stance again plays trietha'nolatnirie a'stlie -tertiary h urexyiated amine; and previous examplesexemplify this preferred type-or material.

Conventional demulsi fyir i'g el'gents' eiriployefl'in the treatment-argon fieldem "ions aroused as such, or after dilutionwith Enysflitable Solvent, such "as water; petroleumhydrocarbons; S11E01! as ga soli'ne, kerosene; Istove' on; a coal tar product, such he benzene; toluene," xylene," tar acid oil.

cresol, anthracene oil, etc. Alcohols, particularly aliphatic alcohols, such as methyl alcohol, ethyl alcohol, denatured alcohol, propyl alcohol, butyl alcohol, hexyl alcohol, octyl alcohol, etc., may be empoyed as diluents. Miscellaneous solvents, such as pine oil, carbon tetrachloride, sulfur dioxide extract obtained in the refining of petroleum, etc., may be employed as diluents. Similarly, the material or materials employed as the demulsifying agent of our process may be admixed with one or more of the solvents customarily used in connection with conventional demulsifying agents. Moreover, said material or materials may be used alone, or in admixture with other suitable well known classes of demulsifying agents.

It is well known that conventional demulsifying agents may be used in a water-soluble form, or in an oil-soluble form, or in a form exhibiting both oil and water solubility. Sometimes they may be used in a form which exhibits relatively limited oil solubility. However, since such reagents are sometimes used in a ratio of 1 to 10,000, or 1 to 20,000, or even 1 to 30,000, or even 1 to 40,000, or 1 to 50,000, in desalting practice, such an apparent insolubility in oil and water is not significant, because said reagents undoubtedly have solubility within the concentration employed. Indeed, solubility in the ordinary sense may be meaningless under such circumstances. This same fact is true in regard to the material or materials employed as the demulsifying agent of our process.

We desire to point out that the superiority of the reagent or demulsifying agent contemplated in our herein described process for resolving petroleum emulsions, is based upon its ability to treat certain emulsions more advantageously and at a somewhat lower cost than is possible with other available demulsifiers, or conventional mix tures thereof. It is believed that the particular demulsifying agent or treating agent hereindescribed will find comparatively limited application, so far as the majority of oil field emulsions are concerned; but we have found that such a demulsifying agent has commercial value, as it will economically break or resolve oil field emulsions in a number of cases which cannot be treated as easily or at so low a cost with the demulsifying agents heretofore available.

In practising our process for resolving petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, a treating agent or demulsifying agent of the kind above described is brought into contact with or caused to act upon the emulsion to be treated, in any of the various ways or by any of the various apparatus now generally used to resolve or break petroleum emulsions with a chemical reagent, the above procedure being used either alone or in combination with other demulsifying procedure, such as the electrical dehydration process.

The demulsifier herein contemplated may be employed in connection with what is commonly known as down-the-hole procedure, i. e., bringing the demulsifier into contact with the fluids of the well at the bottom of the well, or at some point prior to the emergence of said fluids. This particular type of application is decidedly feasible when the demulsifier is used in connection with acidification of calcareous oil-bearing strata, especially if suspended in or dissolved in the acid employed for acidification.

A somewhat analogous use of our demulsifying agent is the removal of a residual mud sheath which remains after drilling a well by the rotary method. Sometimes the drilling mud contains added calcium carbonate or the like to render the mud susceptible to reaction with hydrochloric acid or the like, and thus expedite its removal.

One preferred and more narrow aspect of our invention, insofar as it is concerned with demulsification of petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, is concerned with the admixture of the esters or compounds, as described, with a viscosity-reducing solvent such as the various solvents enumerated, particularly aromatic solvents, alcohols, ether alcohols, etc., as previously speci fied. The Word solvent is used in this sense to refer to the mixture, if more than one solvent is employed, and generally speaking, it is our preference to employ the demulsifier in a form representing 40% to demulsifier selected to give a solution or mixture, particularly adaptable for proportional pumps or other measuring devices. The following examples will illustrate this aspect of our invention:

DEMULSIFIER Example 1 Per cent Composition of matter, as exemplified by Example 3 60 Xylene 20 Isopropyl alcohol 20 DEMULSIFIER Example 2 Per cent Composition of matter, as exemplified by Example 4 '70 Cresylic acid 20 Denatured alcohol 10 DEMULSIFIER Example 3 Per cent Composition of matter, as exemplified by Example 5 45 Aromatic petroleum solvent 20 Isobutyl alcohol 20 Acetone 15 DEMULSIFIER Example 4 Per cent Composition of matter, as exemplified by Example 6 Aromatic petroleum solvent 10 Denatured alcohol 10 Acetone 0 (The above proportions represent percentage by weight.)

The results obtained with the herein contemplated compounds give results which are absolutely unexpected and unlocked-for, in light of the demulsifying action of other compounds of apparently analogous structure. For instance, it is conventional practice to use fractional esters derived from triricinolein or other esters, as herein described as reactants, in combination with other dicarboxy acids, such as phthalic acid, maleic acid, malic acid, citraconic acid, acelaic acid, adipic acid, etc. On numerous emulsions the diglycollic acid derivatives have given results which are simply outstanding, in comparison with such other analogous partial esters. In other words, it appears that for some unexpected reason, the ether grouping of diglycollic acid, in combination with the carboxylic radicals and the remainder of the molecule, give some exceedingly 2i i ct va adsorption pmpertx, or orientationmop: em which: gives:resultsv so:. xtraordinari1r 1m: usual; l

FIELD. Tsar N 01-. 1

on an in P I9PQ l Ffi EQCl, i h McFa m fie d a '01 e r. Melia di Texas, t mnl i l qdu d qn ained RPlTQ IY 20% of 5 2 5 9 31 d W? 1- eml siq ak read ily at 70 E, using a dernulsifier corresponding u stantia xampl s-, P eced h residnal il;contai n ed a total of one tenth percent emulsion orwat er, The totaltime involved, both 'iri mixing and settling, was one hour. The ratio of deinulsifie r used, on the basis of ,barrels of-recovered oil,- was 1 to 5,000; All told, such results represent'an improvement of at least l0 over the next bestfavailablecompound of the same structure, but obtained from some other 'diba si'c acid, such as phthalic maIeic, adipic, etc., instead of diglycollic, notwithstanding the fact that this latter series of comparative tests were conducted at 30 5, higher in temperature.

FIELD TEs'rNo. 2 a

On an oil-producing property located inthe Placedo Field=, -at or near Placedo, Texas, the emulsionproduced contained approximately 25% of emulsion and water. The emulsion broke readilyat 70=..F.,using a demulsifier corresponding substantially to Example 1, preceding. The residual oil contained a total oftwo tenths percent emulsion orwater. The total timeinvolved, both ,in .mixing and settling, was one hour, The ratio of-.demu1si-fier used-, on-the basis of barrels otrecoveredoil, was 1 to '10,00 0.- All told, such results represent an improvement of atleast 25% over the next best availablecompound of the same structure, but obtained from some other dibasic acid, such as phthalic, maleic, adipic, etc., fe ;9. igl9 11 i am! Imam-.

Onan oil-producing property located in, the South Government wensat or near Duvol, Texas, theemulsion produced contained approximately-% of emulsion and water, The emulsiombroke-readilyat 100 F.-, using a demulsifier corresponding substantially to Example 1, prev ceding. The residual oil contained a total of one tenth- 'p'ercent emulsion or Water, The total time involved, both in mixing and-settlin was one hour, The ratio of demulsifier used on the basis of barrels of recovered oil,-was 1 to- 20,000. All told; suchresults represent an improvement of at least 40%over the next best available compound of -the same structure, but'obtained from some other 'dibasic; acid, such as phthalic, maleic, adipic, etc. instead of diglycollic; notwithstanding the fact that this latter series of comparative tests were conducted at 30? l t-higher in temperature.

It has been previously pointed out that one of thereactants herein employed, to wit, the resultant,pf,,a reactionpbetween. an acylated aminoalcqhol and diglycollic acid. maybe sub-resinous natur and. m y nt i unreacte hydr xyl radicals, either, as part of anacyl radical, such as apantofa ricinoleylradicaLor else, as part of a triethanolamine-,radicalu rl e like, but. in any event, each-of such monomeric units-must conaint? p ura itrof u re i d .die yc l d ad alizya id-t ns may: be c ns d ed s a p ly rboxy acid. b

Onthe .other, .hand,, the ,hydroxylated tertiary, amines herein-employed ,for. ,production. of the acylatedlaminoalcohol, may also;be employed: as

22: reactants for: zfiQmhiIlaimQn-zwilihirtha,polyflal boxy reactant. 3 11st describedt; It: iwillqbe recalled, that the ,listtofssuitable etertiary= amines reviously numerated fort-reaction in the ,manufactureaof aminQalqQhols,-. inelndeslthose finalizing: la ,;.si1;re=1e hydmxyl radicalloriatpluraiityof hydroxyl; radiels; Th sesuchsaminoalcohols employediaa reetal ts; inelndesisuehmanabler oflactinag as mono'r hydt-icsaleoholsa 012..PQ1Y11Y11I'iC? alcohols:

Inzthg instant.casefl-thesituation becomes-even morescomplioated. by; ithesfact that; as has. been p ed put;etheriiicationrmay,takaplacer swel aslesifirifiqatinna HQMfiYGIs':thiSidOBSlIIQtddEtIfiCt ram; theiNieWfpQin-tu oraconsideratinaltheapoly- Qi r fiul fiiml' as @HI'BSiIIQ'OITLSU-brtiBSlfiS -.of& the polyester type, for the reason thatgethegificatien may be consideregl asa combination of two polyhydric alcohols to produce a larger polyhydric alcohol with the elimination of water.

If an alcohol isindicated by the formula:

KQHM where-nindicates theinumberwzs on-.more,-andif dlglycollic acid beuindicatedz for convenience-by thedormnla:

X"(COOH) 2 then the, reaqfiqp-iibfiiiwafinia -zllQlyhydrienalcohol met d gl eolli tacidewill resnltainr-a c mpound 3 x1331! manhe ndicated by .thezfollowingformula Yxwoorn here-=1 adiea esi heimaaher Immanuel-t ed hich.

atezs me urh eel-baa e h is'l, ado ?1Z.Q f- .mu ing, however, as would be true in fi'ffl 'aigrity i ses that th a szahqtaet allaweuld bea- P l yd ic a pehelhi ee 9 inetiemr yeanttnat t e rmulaem eh weltii itateqmbmatiem tin h eh'l here we ea eiiher:r sie alacarb anaaee icals, nor residual hydroxyl radiealsglor might ree. it i minimums. :m wh h t ere residual vdrsw aa ee s? dinear sidnala a bax l-race 6e15, ansqm enndstwh r thereim htahe re id l-2 9p i di .a! 511.5 ?ilF fie P-filzl ydrfixylz dils:: on ere-WehhbehetM .7 hisii ;.i.nQ-i cated iethe-io pw lle i wh ch? indicates a mallinh leemmb r i in h asee a mo emenan s mhabl -n i ra l er ua' lyvl ss t aafiha d m' dZzz-i-indieate thegnum erl rm rehandm' ndm' l ndi etheznesultantproductfioesvnctzexeeedatomm andi is usually less than 5,000 and preferably less than 3,000. This is particularly true if the resultant product is soluble to a fairly definite extent, for instance, at least in some solvent, such as water, alcohol, benzene, dichloroethyl ether, acetone, cresylic acid, or the like. This is simply another way of stating that it is preferable that the product be of the sub-resinous type, which is commonly referred to as an A resin or a B resin, as distinguished from a C resin which is a highly infusible, insoluble resin (see Ellis, Chemistry of Synthetic Resins (1935), pages 862, et seq).

In recapitulating what has been said previously, the sub-resinous, semi-resinous, or resinous product herein contemplated may be indicated by the following formula:

in which the characters have their previous significance, and y represents a small whole number not greater than 3, and .1 represents a small whole number not greater than 5, q is a small whole number less than 10, and preferably 1 to 5; or an organic radical derived from a monohydric alcohol.

Sub-resinous materials having the repetitious unit appearing 3 to times and having a plurality of free carboxyl radicals, or free hydroxyl radicals, or both, are well known in a variety of forms and find practical application in demulsification of crude emulsions. Generally speaking, the molecular weight of such sub-resinous materials, regardless of class, is less than 10,000, and is more apt to be in a range of 3 to 5,000 as an upper limit.

A more elaborate description of this type of material appears in numerous patents concerned with demulsification of crude oil emulsions, and reference is made to such patents for a more elaborate description:

Attention is directed to our co-pending applications Serial Nos. 604,993, 604,994, 604,995, 604,996, 604,998, 604,999, 605,000, 605,001 and 605,002 filed July 13, 1945, all of which are related to the present application, in that such co-pending applications are concerned, among other things, with the breaking of oil field emulsions by means of demulsifiers containing a diglycollic acid radical.

Some of the acylated amino bodies contemplated for use in our process are freely dispersible in water in the free state. Presumably, such systems comprise the reagent in the form of a base, i. e., a substituted ammonium compound. other instances, the free formsof the reagents are substantially water-insoluble, but the salt forms (e. g., the acetates) are very water-dispersible. In some such instances, therefore, it is more desirable to employ the reagent in the form of one of its salts. We have found, for example, that the acetate, hydroxyacetate, lactate, gluconate, propionate, caprate, phthalate, fumarate, maleate, benzoate, succinate, oxalate, tartrate, chloride, nitrate, or sulfate, prepared by the addition of the suitable acidto th'e acylated amino body, constitutes a reagent which is usually somewhat more soluble or dispersible in water than the original acylated amino body, and which is, if anything, slightly more eifective than the simple acylated amino body, when used in our process. In such instances where the simple acylated'amino body is not particularly water-dispersible, it may still be possible to employ it in free form and without preparing a salt form, by using some 24 non-aqueous solvent, such as aromatic petroleum solvent instead of water. It is to be understood that references to the reagents in these specifications and claims include the amino bodies in basic form and in the form of salts of acids, as well as the amino bodies themselves.

Attention is directed to the fact that blown oil derived from higher fatty acids or higher fatty acid glycerides, and particularly blown castor oil, may be employed as a source of a detergent-forming monocarboxy acid acyl radical or acyloxy radical in the preparation of the herein contemplated compounds. In innumerable instances the replacement of castor oil or an analogous ester or ricinoleic acid by the drastica1ly-oxidized or blown product gives a compound which is particularly valuable as a demulsifying agent for petroleum emulsions. This applies with equal force and effect to blown dehydrated castor oil and its analogs in the form of the corresponding acids or other esters.

The new chemical products or compounds herein described form the subject-matter of our divisional application Serial No. 707,982, filed November 5, 1946.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions cf the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of (A) a hydroxylated basic tertiary amine; and (B) the resultant obtained by esterification between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol in which there is at least one occurrence of the radical in which RC0 is the acyl radical of a monocarboxy detergent-forming acid having at least 8 and not more than 32 carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R is an alkylene radical having at least 2 and not more than 10 carbon atoms; and "n is a small whole number varying from 1 to 10; and the molecular weight of said aminoalcohol in monomeric form being at least 243 and not over 4,000, and the molecular Weight of the diglycollic acid ester being not in excess of 5,000; the ratio of A to B being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

2. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the esterification product or (A) a hydroxylated basic tertiary amine; and (B) the polymeric resultant obtained by esterification between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol in which there is at least one occurrence of the radical in which RC0 is the acyl radical of a monocarboxy detergent-forming acid having at least 8 and not more than 32 carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R is an alkylene radical having at least 2 and not more than 10 carbon atoms; and n is a small whole number varying from 1 to 10; and the molecular weight of said aminoalcohol in monomeric form beign at least 243 and not over 1,000, and the molecular weight of the diglycollic acid ester being not in excess of 5,000; the ratio of A to B being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

3. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of (A) a polyhydroxylated basic tertiary amine; and (B) the polymeric resultant obtained by esterification between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol in which there is at least one occurrence of the radical in which RC is the acyl radical of a monocarboxy detergent-forming acid having at least 8 and not more than 32 carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R is an alkylene radical having at least 2 and not more than carbon atoms; and n is a small whole number varying from 1 to 10; and the molecular weight of said aminoalcohol in monomeric form being at least 243 and not over 1,000, and the molecular weight of the diglycollic acid ester being not in excess of 5,000; the ratio of A to B being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

4. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of (A) a polyhydroxylated basic tertiary monoamine; and (B) the polymeric resultant obtained by esterification between diglycollie acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol, in which there is at least One occurrence of the radical in which RC0 is the acyl radical-of a monocarboxy detergent-forming acid having at least 8 and not more than 32 carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R is an alkylene radical having at least 2'and not more than 10 carbon atoms; and n is a small whole number varying from 1 to 10 and the molecular weight of said aminoalcohol in monomeric form being at least 243 and not over 1,000, and the molecular weight of the diglycollic acid ester being not in excess of 5,000; the ratio of A to B being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

5. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of (A) triethanolamine; and (B) the polymeric resultant obtained by esterification between diglycollic acid and a. basic acylated aminoalcohol, in which there is at least one occurrence of the radical in which RC0 is the acyl radical of a monocarboxy detergent-forming acid having at least 8 and not more than 32 carbon atoms; the amino nitrogen atom is basic; R is an alkylene radical having at least 2 and not more than 10 carbon atoms; and n is a small whole number varying from 1 to 10 and the molecular weight of said aminoalcohol in monomeric form being at least 243 and not over 1,000, and the molecular weight of the diglycollic acid ester being not in excess 26 of 5,000 the ratio of A to B being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

6. The process of claim 5, wherein RC0 is the acyl radical of a higher fatty acid.

7. The process of claim 5, wherein RC0 is the acyl radical of an unsaturated higher fatty acid.

8. The process of claim 5, wherein RC0 is the ricinoleyl radical.

9. The process of claim 6, wherein RC0 is the ricinoleyl radical and R is an ethylene radical.

10. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of triethanolamine and a polymeric resultant obtained in turn by esterification between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol; said basic acylated aminoalcohol being an intermediate obtained by esterification reaction between one mole of triricinolein and approximately 3 moles of triethanolamine; the ratio of triethanolamine to the diglycollic acid derivative being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglyccllic acid radicals.

11. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of triethanolamine and a polymeric resultant obtained in turn by esterification between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol; said basic acylated aminoalcohol being an intermediate obtained by esterification and etherification reactions between one mole of triricinolein and approximately 6 moles of triethanolamine; the ratio of triethanolamine to the diglycollic acid derivative being stoichiometrically less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

12. A process for breaking petroleum emulsions of the water-in-oil type, characterized by subjecting the emulsion to the action of the esterification product of triethanolamine and a polymeric resultant obtained in turn by esterification between diglycollic acid and a basic acylated aminoalcohol; said basic acylated aminoalcohol being an intermediate obtained by esterification and etherification reactions between one mole of triricinolein and approximately 9 moles of triethanolamine; the ratio of triethanolamine to the diglycollic acid derivative being stoichiometrical- 1y less than required for complete esterification of all free diglycollic acid radicals.

MELVIN DE GROOTE.

ARTHUR F. WIRTEL.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 2,192,993 De Groote et a1 Mar. 12, 1940 2,231,758 De Groote et al Feb, 11, 1941 2,372,797 Segessemann Apr. 3, 1945 2,385,969 De Groote et a1. Oct. 2, 1945 

